Portable products such as radio transceivers and pagers often provide pocket or belts clip to attach the portable product to clothing worn by the user. Relevant art belt clips are generally designed for manual assembly and now present problems when attempting automated assembly. Relevant art belt clips utilizing pins further present problems in terms of durability.
Manufacturing a typical prior art belt clip requires manual alignment of hinge pin holes of the clip with hinge pin holes of the housing. A known prior art belt clip uses a rolled metal pin which is difficult to align because, prior to insertion, the diameter of the pin is larger than the diameter of the holes. Accordingly, the pin is not self-aligning and insertion resistance is encountered over the entire length of the pin. Furthermore, the interference fit between the rolled metal pin and the hole in a plastic clip causes undue stress and fatigue in the plastic, thereby reducing the durability of the plastic clip. The continual radial forces endured by plastic clips makes the pin and hole juncture the equivalent of an Achilles heel, exposing an otherwise durable product to sudden collapse.
Another typical relevant art pin discussed in U.S. Pat. No. 1,175,550, utilizes a retainer such as a press-on nut. This pin causes increased part count, further factory assembly problems including increased tooling and field problems due to loose or lost attachment hardware.